understand that fitch is not just looking for an 11th hour debt ceiling deal that sets the table for another mini crisis down the road. the federal government hit the debt limit as you know on december 31st. the treasury is using so-called extraordinary measures to pay its bills through mid-february or early march. now, fitch predicts washington will extend the debt ceiling despite the current war of words between president obama and republicans in congress. what happens if we get downgraded? it happened before. remember 2011, when standard & poor's did it. that hit markets and the wider economy hard, but it didn't cause interest rates to increase. this time could be different, however, because the rest of the world is getting its act together. even successful businesses like ford are worried. here's what ceo alan mulally told me today. >> i think the most important thing to your point is that we come together around a solution that allows us to live within our means, to reduce our budget deficits, and also to deal with our trade deficits, and create an environment where the business